How to Create A Successful Online Dating Profile

If you’ve turned to the internet to find your soul mate then you’re just one amongst many lonely hearts doing the same. According to popular online dating website Match.com 1 in 5 relationships now start on internet dating websites. However for some people even on the internet they find their inboxes remain frustratingly empty or their profile attracts all the wrong kinds of people. Whether you’re using a location-specific dating agency in London (professional), a very niche dating agency, or a popular, nationwide dating agency, there is an art to creating an attractive personal profile on a dating agency website. We’ve come up with our top tips to help lonely hearts everywhere attract their perfect match using their online dating profile.

Be honest

Make sure that when you’re filling out your profile you are being true to yourself, don’t write anything because you think it ‘sounds good’. There’s no point being anything other than honest and true to yourself as you will just end up attracting the wrong people, or people that you are incompatible with. The foundation of a good relationship is honesty! Make sure you’re starting out any potential relationships on the right foot and as you mean to go on!

Don’t be negative

Concentrate on positives when you write your profile, too much negativity is unattractive. Your potential matches want to know about what kind of person you are and what you like, not a long rant about what you dislike. Try to be cheerful, warm, positive and upbeat to create the right ambience to your profile.

Choose an appropriate photo

You may be tempted to use a flattering ten year old photo of yourself when you had long hair and were a few stone lighter than you are now, but don’t! Remember that although your next relationship may start on the internet you’re not going to be able to hide behind that old photo forever, so it’s best to be honest about the way you look. It’s surprising the amount of people that get it wrong when it comes to profile photos on dating websites, don’t use a photo that you’ve obviously taken of yourself in the bathroom mirror, particularly if you’re semi-naked in the photo. Whether or not you have the body for it, we don’t want to see it on your profile, it gives off the wrong impression and is more likely to attract the wrong kind of attention. ‘Funny’ drunken photos don’t give the right impression either and could narrow down the interest that you receive in your profile. Don’t use very distant or blurry photos, people want to see what you actually look like and may presume the worst if you pick a photo where you can’t see your face. Another massive turn-off is photos that include other people. Your profile photo should be a clear, honest, recent photo of you on your own, not you and your dad/best friend/pet monkey/ex.

Give the right amount of information

It’s important to give just the right amount of information in your profile. If you give too little information you run the risk of sounding boring or uninterested, but if you write realms of text you could end up sounding self-involved or arrogant. Make sure that you’re not being too vague, writing that you ‘like music, films and going out’ is not helpful. The majority of people will like all three of those things, you need to give more detail, what genre of film do you like? What bands have you been to see live? Where are your favourite places to go, and what do you do there? Try to throw in interesting snippets of detail so that people want to hear more. Again, concentrate on the positives and avoid any negatives and things that you don’t like. Make sure that you’re not giving too much detail in your profile, don’t air your dirty laundry there.

Don’t be too specific in what you’re looking for

Just like the previous point, this is all about finding the right balance. If you’re too broad you could end up looking desperate and like you’re just looking for any date. It’s important to show some selectiveness but without being ridiculously picky! You can’t expect your future match to be a clone of yourself, remember that opposites often attract and complement each other. Make sure you’re not ruling out Mr or Miss Right just because of their eye colour or because they don’t like a particular, obscure music subculture.

Don’t use clichés

Sometimes it can be difficult to think of what to write in your online dating profile, but avoid using cliché phrases to fill up the space. Try to think about what makes you different and what you enjoy doing the most and write honestly about yourself rather than using generic clichés. Using clichés can make you seem unimaginative, boring or make your profile look just like the last 20 listings that have just been browsed. You need your profile to grab the reader’s attention and make them want to find out more about you.

Author Bio

Sarah Hewitt is a new blogger who blogs about anything and everything. You can contact her via her Twitterpage or Google+